Cjrpostma, thanks a lot. Ocd can be a nightmare, some people don't understand. My parents don't, and they think I'm excessive but I can't help it. Thankfully that hasn't stopped me from using my camera, if anyone checks out my flickr, I've used it in rain, in forests, drains all crawling around. But when I notice dust it puts me off for a while. The main issue for me is just when I'm putting the gear back into a dry cabinet. I usually give it a clean wipe over the lens and camera body with a microfiber cloth (which I believe is normal) and just put the lenses and camera in but sometimes I end up inspecting..and it starts all over again. And although I know what to do to change lenses quick, outside the house, I end up swapping a lens and then inspecting the other lens for dust at the rear element and that obviously increases the risk of introducing more dust. But I just keep using the blower excessively on it. So sometimes in terms of affecting my photography, I am very hesitant to swap lenses when I'm outside.
Btw, I have seen a counsellor for ocd related stuff before and I never found it to work. Before I sleep I still check my windows, doors and taps. That doesn't bother me too much. When I travel I check my stuff again and again. I suppose some paranoia is better than none but when excessive it holds me back and wastes my time.
You know, in the long run you should get over the dust issue as thats what we all eventually end up being anyway. My number one rule in life is not to worry over something I have no control over. Keeps the stress level real low.
aFrIcanSH wrote:
Cjrpostma, thanks a lot. Ocd can be a nightmare, some people don't understand. My parents don't, and they think I'm excessive but I can't help it. Thankfully that hasn't stopped me from using my camera, if anyone checks out my flickr, I've used it in rain, in forests, drains all crawling around. But when I notice dust it puts me off for a while. The main issue for me is just when I'm putting the gear back into a dry cabinet. I usually give it a clean wipe over the lens and camera body with a microfiber cloth (which I believe is normal) and just put the lenses and camera in but sometimes I end up inspecting..and it starts all over again. And although I know what to do to change lenses quick, outside the house, I end up swapping a lens and then inspecting the other lens for dust at the rear element and that obvious increases the risk of introducing more dust. But I just keep using the blower excessively on it. So sometimes in terms of affecting my photography, I am very hesitant to swap lenses when I'm outside.
Btw, I have seen a counsellor for ocd related stuff before and I never found it to work. Before I sleep I still check my windows, doors and taps. That doesn't bother me too much. When I travel I check my stuff again and again. I suppose some paranoia is better than none but when excessive it holds me back and wastes my time. ...Show more →
Oh, you seriously do have OCD. Ug, that can be tough to deal with. I have family and friends with it. I can't say I truely understand what you go through, but, I've learned to accept it in those I know and love.
Sound like you are working at it, and that's good. Keep working at it.
Something to consider ... a second camera body if you can afford it ... it may reduce the anxiety of switching lenses. Also, you are the perfect candidate for zoom lenses.
Thanks for the suggestions Andre!
Zoom wise nothing really beats a 24/85 1.4 or the 50 1.2, though i might gladly replace the lot with a 24-70mm. Or maybe not. I'm not sure about that bit yet. 2nd Body would be a must when i travel around Indonesia, but at this point it's unlikely. I'll send my camera for a clean when i bring it to nikon to fix the left af point issue.
I really wasn't kidding about my OCD. I think in general apart from snide comments about my inability to control myself, I've a better "mindset" to resist urges because of points the the one on wearing down the coatings, and the link that euua posted (yes i did open it, i saw something similar on lensrentals.com or something too) etc. And also reading the perspective of cjrpostma and "My number one rule in life is not to worry over something I have no control over. Keeps the stress level real low." Just stuff i didn't realise.
I'm not trying to write some lame comment/reply thanking so and so or whoever who posted stuff which helped, but if i say it helped means it really did because it's going to help me better deal (or not deal - as in not bother so much) with the problem which has plagued me for so long. All i needed was something to wake me up from this world so transfixed on dust dust dust, and to see how others do things and how I should try.
I don't think your problem is within the scope of this forum. We are not psychologists or psychiatrists. I don't think you need help. I KNOW you need help. The sooner you seek help, the sooner you will feel better, and your family will also.
You spent an entire day cleaning lenses over and over and over again. That's a day you could have spent with the family, doing something enjoyable.
OCD is rough... a few people in my family have dealt with it. good luck and don't give up on curing yourself of it.
fwiw, my brother in law was OCD about cleaning stuff. after some therapy he not only got over it, but turned into a slob! but a happy slob. he found it was easier to just stop caring, I guess. (I'm sure that's an over simplification of what he went through). but maybe you should just try going whole hog... take your camera and lens and make it a point to see how not clean you can make it. I'm not saying throw it in mud, but just say "ok, I'm gonna leave this thing all over the house, no lens cap, no filter, I'm gonna change lenses and leave the mount open because who cares, throw it in my car without a bag, etc". maybe actually experiencing the actual thing you fear will make you realize it's not worth fearing? I dunno
Sounds like an idea! currently my plan is just not to inspect the lenses at all, maybe once in a while before i put them in use a blower at the mount. I'm not going to go all out to get dust in, but im going to try to do things more casually and try to get the worry of dust out of my head. I mean this stuff is meant to be used..my friend mentioned how if its dirtier and stuff the resale value drops, but i figured if it drops by 10%-15% if its a clean lens with little use and i don't enjoy it, and 25% if its a slightly more beat up lens, i'd pick 25% any day. Or so. Anyway not here to calculate numbers.
say you *destroy* your equipment. trashed. no resale value.
then what? will you live? I'd be willing to bet you'll be just fine. maybe out a few bucks, but fine.
don't think about resale value... you didn't buy it to sell it, you bought it to use it. it's not an investment, it's an expense. accept the fact that if you destroy your gear you'll be fine. you won't destroy it, but just pretend you will. so to hell with it, what are you worrying for? if its in great shape in five years and you sell it, great. if you drive it into the ground and throw it in the trash at least you used it. either way you're fine in the end.
the problem is when you start creating hypothetical scenarios for the future you can drive yourself insane worrying about all the ways you can screw up.
remember that this is camera gear and even if you throw it in the trash you will be fine.
I mean you can't stick your head in the sand about everything... you might not want to eat a pound of bacon every day because that might have some serious consequences. but this is camera gear. even if it goes in the trash you will be alive and ok. it doesn't *really* matter.
at the stage when i was contemplating selling my gear for new ones (or even moving to canon over this issue..wtf?) i figured i'd buy the same lenses, whether here or at canon. The expense would be higher too. I've decided to "see how dirty my gear can get". Thanks man
